Fruit Roll-Ups & Frayed Ends

Maya's iPhone died at 3:47 PM—right as Jace was typing something important. The three dots danced on her screen, then vanished into the digital void along with her remaining 12% battery.

"You've got to be kidding me," she muttered, patting her pockets like she might magically produce a charging cable from thin air. No luck. Her backpack was a black hole of homework wrappers and half-used gum packs, but definitely no lightning cable.

The school bus lurched, and Maya gripped the seat in front of her. Three rows back, Jace was probably wondering why she'd left him on read. Again. They'd been best friend since sixth grade, but lately everything felt weirdly fragile, like that one papaya her mom bought last week that looked perfect on the outside but was completely mushy when you cut it open.

"You good?" Chloe slid into the seat beside her, tossing her perfectly straight hair like she was in a shampoo commercial. "You look like someone stole your wifi."

"My phone's dead. Jace was texting me about... something." Maya pressed her forehead against the cool window. "And I left my cable at home because SOMEONE—you know what, never mind."

Chloe's eyes lit up. "Ooh, mysterious. Is he finally gonna ask you to Winter Formal?"

"No! I mean, I don't think so? We're just friends. Except maybe we're not? I don't know what we are anymore."

Her calico cat, Luna, had more romantic game than Maya did. Luna just stared judgmentally from windowsills and still somehow had three tomcats lining up outside their house every night. Maya couldn't even get through one conversation without making everything awkward.

"Girl," Chloe said, pulling a twisted charging cable from her own bag like a magician producing a bouquet from a hat. "You're overthinking this. Borrow this. And maybe when you see what he actually wrote, you won't have to wonder if you're a papaya on the inside anymore."

Maya plugged in, hands trembling as her iPhone sputtered back to life. The notification blinked: *can u come over? my cat had kittens. u have to see them.*

She exhaled, a smile tugging at her lips. Maybe things weren't so complicated after all.

"Well?" Chloe demanded. "What'd he say?"

"He needs me to see baby cats."

"That's literally the most you thing ever."